Sarah is a member of Shipman & Goodwin’s Employer Defense and Labor Relations practice group. She counsels clients on a wide variety of employment matters, including sexual harassment, discrimination, compensation, termination, severance, and workplace safety. Sarah also represents employers in labor disputes and employment-related litigation, with significant experience litigating cases in state and federal court, before administrative agencies such as the Connecticut Commission on Human Rights and Opportunities, and through alternate dispute resolution. She manages an active caseload of discrimination and harassment lawsuits, conducting all phases of the litigation. This includes interviewing witnesses, collecting evidence, formulating and advising clients on legal and business strategies, taking and defending depositions, and negotiating resolutions.
She has written and conducted trainings for supervisors as well as line employees on sexual harassment prevention, termination best practices, and workplace safety. In addition, Sarah has spent significant time counseling clients, writing and presenting on issues surrounding paid leave under the FFCRA and state executive orders, as well as employer policies on return to work and refusal to work related to COVID-19.
Sarah takes a 360 degree view of each case, considering her clients' budget, business values, reputation, and concerns for precedent-setting action. While she is always prepared to try a case, Sarah recognizes that early dispute resolution is often in the best interests of her clients. She values collaborative work in all types of settings ranging from small teams to large "virtual" law firms. Sarah also has a strong background in complex litigation representing clients in antitrust, product liability, and medical malpractice cases. This experience includes trying several multi-million dollar cases to verdict and representing clients through post-trial proceedings.
Sarah’s practice also includes representing clients pro bono in immigration and child protection cases through partnerships with Lawyers for Children America and the ACLU. Specifically, she helped a young woman apply for asylum because she feared persecution in her home country for refusing an arranged marriage and rejecting her culture’s restrictions on women.
Outside of Sarah’s legal practice, she serves as the Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors for Simply Smiles, Inc., a not-for-profit organization that builds villages of foster homes for children in Native communities. Sarah advises Simply Smiles on a number of legal issues, including child protection, employment, real estate, taxation, insurance, and general liability. She also engages in significant fundraising, budgeting, and strategic planning, and facilitates collaborative partnerships with other organizations.